Trenching-machine.



J. C. FRENCH. TR ENCHING momma. APPLICATION mm JULY 15. I914.

Patented Jan. 2, 19170 3 SHEETS-SHFET I.-

-J..C. FRENCH.

TRENCHING MACHINE. APPLICATIGN FILED JULY ISI 19H.

Patented Jan. 2,1917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

J. C. FRENCH.

TRENCHING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 15. 1914.

Patented Jan. 2, 1917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

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essr AVAlLABLE COP Um'rsn sTA'rus rrr rn @FFICE.

JAMES C. FRENCH, F KENOSHA, WISCONSIN, nssrsnon TO rnnnnmcr: c. AUSTIN, or

' ci-rlcn o, ILLINOIS.

Application filed July 15, 1914.

' To 'wflmn it may concern:

Be Known that 1, JAMES. C. FRENCH, a 1. of the United States of America, and resid 't of Kenoshe, Kenosha county, l/Vis- T'ZIV'E) invented a certain new and prominent in Trenching-Machines, Erie following is a. specification. My invention reletbs to excavators in general, but more particularly to those for maknfil ,ing ditches or trenches, and more especially Wtothose exclvators for trenching purposes in wl' ich'j-cinendless series of buckets is or il -in u s, tilting beam at the rear of the line. *ncmlly started, the object of my inrento provide camel and highly efficient onstiuction of excavator of that particular kind in which the endless series of buckets ismovable back and forth across the trench, during the continuous travel of the buckets lip-end down in the ditch, for the purpose yofcutting trench which is wider than the ,j-l icket, endthereby obviating the necessity of using very wide buckets, or of employing 35 two or ignoreseries ofbuclrcts arranged side by side, as was often done when a trench of unusual width was desired.

A. speciel object is to provide :1 simpler ,gkpd .xnore satisfactory form of beam than was heretoforeemployed in machines of this kind for supporting the exca ating buckets,

having novel and eiiicicnt means for causing the beam to automatically reciprocate back and forth across the trench, and so constructed crud arranged that it will be capable of operating'at a greater angle from the horizontal than 'was heretofore possible with machines of this kind.

It is also an object to provide certain de- 40 tails and features of cons. guction and com- 'binations tending to increase the general efficiency and servicesbility of trenching machine boring n reciprocating digging beam of this particular character.

To the foregoing and other useful ends myinvention consists in matters hereinafter set forth and claimed. In. the accompanying drawings---Figure 1 is a side elevation of a trenching machine embodying the principles of my invention.

' Fig. 2 is an enlarged View looking down on the upper end of the digging: beam Fig. 8

is an enlarged rear elevation the digging "beam and endless series of bucl'sets shown in Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented J an. 2, 1917.

Serial Ho. 851,952.

Fig. 1, looking in a direction at right angles to said beam. Fig. -'l is an enlarged section of the upper portion of said digging beam and seriesof buckets, taken on line llin Fig. 3.

As thus illustrated, my invention comprises a body or platform A. provided with a rear frame or super structure a, and with an engine B of any suitable character. The front portion of said body is supported by suitable wheels a and the rear end of said body is supported by suitable caterpillzi-rs (l which are operated by said engine to slowly propel the machine forward during the excavating operation, and also while the machine is traveling from one place to on other. It will be understood, of course, that the transmission from the engine to said caterpillars may be of any suitable character. and that any suitable devices can be employed for controlling this transmission of power. I do not, however, limit myself to any particular means for propelling the ma.- chine along the surface of the ground.

The tilting and sidewise reciprocating digging beam D is supported in position to enter the ground in rear of the body or platform A, being mounted to swing about a horizontal axis located at (Z, which axis ex tends transversely of the direction of travel of the machine, whereby the said beam tilts up and down in a vertical plane at its rear or lower end. The mechanism for providing the sidewise motion of this beam comprises an upper rectangular frame I) composed of parallel side members al and (i and upper and lower cross members d and d these members being secured together in any suitable manner. This frame is preferably strengthened by the truss members all which are applied to the outer sides of the frame members al and (Z whereby said frame is prevented from buckling or bending when subjected to the strain of digging or excavating, as will hereinafter more fully appear. The sidewise reciprocating portion of the beam D comprises-the parallel members (Z which are suitably -connectcd together to form a. sort of ladder frame, this frame be ing provided at its lower end. with a pair of sprocket wheels d', the lower end of the beam being disposed between these two wheels. The upper end portions of the structural members d are, however, spread apart to provide room between them for the upper sprocket wheels d, as' shown more clearly in Fig 3; andthese -upper and lower sprocket wheels are connected s rocket chains or link belts d" b I of any suita le known or approved character.

The

ladder frame and sprockets and link belts, together with the buckets (1 on said link belts are supported for reciprocating moveinent from one side of the rectangular frame to the other-that is to say, they are sup- 'ported for bodily sidewise movement between the frame members (5 and (i these two members being suitably spaced apart to provide room and clearance for this reciprocating,

travel on the track provided on the upper surface of the cross member d, and with other wheels 1! which travel on the track (1 disposed in front of said cross member; and with this construction it will be seen that the axes of the wheels d and (I extend transversely of the digging bcamthat is to say,

' at right angles-to the length of said beam, and also at right angles to the axis of the sprocket wheels (i but the axes of the wheels cl and (Z extend up and down the beam D, as these wheels do not sustain the weight of the' beam, but simply keep the ladder frame or diggin beam parallel with the rectangular upper rame. In this way the said ladder frame and endless series of buckets are movable bodily from one side to the other.

The power is transmitted from the engine' D to the endless series of buckets in any suitable manner, but preferably as follows:- The frame a comprises upright portions which are disposed at opposite sides of the machine, and which embrace the digging beam D and its tilting frame D being provided at their upper ends with suitable bearings for the axis (Z of the beam. This pivotal point or supporting axis of the beam D can be provided in any suitable manner. but by reason of the arrangement shown and desmribed it is not necessary to employ a long driving shaft at this point, as it is desirable to obviate the necessity of sliding sprockets (l on a shaft when the beam moves from side to side. The construction preferably includes, therefore, a short shaft d" supported in suitable bearings on the frame members (1, upon which the sprockets (Z are suitably fixed, and which is provided at its outer end with a large sprocket wheel d; and this driving shaft (1" is then driven parallel from a 'ack shaft cl? through the medium of a sproc et d which is swiveled on the adjacent frame. member cl, being connected with 'the jack shaft by a spline or feather and through the medium of a sprocket chain (1 which connects this com arativelysmall sprocket wheel with the sai relatively large sprocket wheel. The said shaft (1" is supported for rotation in suitable bearings on the frame members d"and d, and is suitably held against endwise movement by the collars d? and d secured thereon at op osite sides-of the bearing, on the adjacent rame member. Sprockets d and d are arranged side by side immediately outsideof the '1 frame member -d,being rigidly connected together, and rotate about an axis coincident with the axis (1 about which the digging beam D tilts or swings in the manner previously described. T he collar d" may have a sprocket wheel, either integral therewith or separate therefrom, and this sprocket, wheel is connected by a sprocket chain a with the said. sprocket (F and finally the sprocket d is suitably connected with the engine Bthrough the medium of a sprocket chain (Z and other suitable means, whereby the said engine is capable of operating the i said buckets (1 in the direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 1 during the time the beam D and everythin 1 carried thereby is moving from side to si e.

The mechanism for reclprocating the beam and buckets back and forth across the trench is preferably as follows:-Uppcr and lower transverse screws ri and (1 are mounted in suitable hearings on the upper and lower end portions of the frame members (Z and d, and are suitably held against endwise movement in said bearings. The screw (Z extends through a screw threaded sleeve and the screw 1Z extends through a similar screw threaded sleeve all of said sleeves being suitably fixed on the ladder frame which carries the buckets. The outer ends of these screws which are adjacent to the frame member (I are provided with beyel gears 61 which are engaged by bevel pinions 33' mounted on the ends of the shafts r1 which latter are mounted in suitable bearings on the side of the frame member r1 being parallel therewith. The adjacent ends of the shafts d are provided with bevel gears 11'' which engage .a bevel pinion the latter being driven by a sprocket connection including a sprocket wheel ll suitably supported by a bracket 11 on the frame member. The two shafts 11" are preferably joined together or integral. so hat t? ivy form one long shaft in effect, 1111!. the .rji'el gears (Z are loosely mounted on this shaft, a bevel jaw clutch I. being slidably mounted on the shaft between the said bevel gears. This clutch may be of any suitable known or approved character,

such for example as those used on planers and grinding machines, and is shifted automatically from one bevel gear to the other, through the medium of any suitable connection or arrangement, thereby automatically reversing the rotation of the screws (Z and d when the digging beam D reaches the limit of its sidewise travel in either direction. In other words, the said clutch is an automatic reversingdevice for causing the said screws to alternately rotate in opposite directions, whereby the said digging beam and the excavating buckets are reciprocated back and forth across the path of the trench, thus producing a trench which is much wider than the buckets; but I do not limit myself to any particular form of clutch mechanism for this purpose. Obviously, it may be controlled by hand, in any wellknown manner, if so desired. Thus the digging beam D and the buckets d are recipro cated back and forth in the manner described,- but the rectangular frame comthe digging beam and buckets, by tilting the same about the horizontal axis 01, any suitable means can be employed. As shown in the drawings, a drum E of any suitable character is provided near the rear of the body A. and is connected by a cable 6 with a sheave c on. the upper end of the rectangular frame of the digging beam, in any suitable manner, to cause the lower end of the digging beam to rise when the cable is wound on the drum. With this arrangement, the digging beam 1) and its upper rectangular supporting frame can be tilted to a horizontal position when it is desired to have the machine travel from one place to another.

The buckets al can be of any suitable character, and as shown are arranged to turn upside down as they pass over the upper sprockets (2 thereby discharging their contents into the hopper F arranged immediately below on the rear end of the machine body. From this hopper the dirt can be discharged to either or both sides of the ma chine by a conveyer f or other suitable apparatus for this purpose. This conveyor or discharging apparatus can be operated by any suitable connection with the engine B, it being understood that the latter is preferably employed for operating all of the various devices through the medium of power transmitting connections which are con trolled by clutches or other similar means.

. With the foregoing construction, the

BEST AVAILABLE co &

mechanism for reciprocating the digging beam from side to side is of a very simple and practical character, but is at the same time well adapted to withstand the various strainsm cident to the excavating operation.

Said entire mechanism tilts about the axis of tilting motion of the beam, when the beam tilts up and down, and supports the beam andbuckets. It will also be seen that the construction permits the digging beam D to be swung downward to a position in which'it stands very nearly vertical, if such is desired, the caterpillars C being spaced apart to provide ample clearance between them for the upwardly moving buckets, as well as for the structure of the beam. These buckets move sidewise toward one caterpillar and then move sidewise toward the other caterpillar, thus widening the trench beyond the limits imposed by the mere width of the buckets themselves. In this connection it v will also be seen tliat the buckets have side cutters G which operate on the side of the tion of the buckets the caterpillars C are being operated to slowly crowd the machine forward' It is obvious, however, that the method of using. a machine of this kind may vary according to the requirements of dif- I ferent cases.

The wheels a can be arranged for steering the machine, if such is necessary or desirable, and any suitable known or approved steering gear can be employed for this purpose. These wheels are preferably arranged some distance ahead of the caterpillars C, and the latter are preferably disposed as far to the rear as possible, or sufiiciently so to enable them to carry the weight of the digging beam and buckets in an advantageous manner, thereby insuring a well balanced machine.

I do not limit myself to the exact construc tion shown and described.

hat I claim as my invention is: Y

1. An excavating machine comprising a tilting digging beam, an endless series of excavating buckets carried on said beam, mechanism for supporting and reciprocating the beam and buckets "from side to side, said mechanism and beam tilting together about a ho rizontal axis, and means for operating the buckets during said lateral mat thereof.

2. An excavating machine compris ng a tilting digging beam, an endless series of excavating buckets carried on said beam, side cutters on said buckets. n'lechanisin for reciprocating the beam and buckets from side to side while the buckets are in the ground, and means for operating the buckets during said lateral motion thereof, said TEZ mechanism including upper and lower screws having threaded engagement with the beam, a tilting frame to support said screws, means for rotating said screws, and

a means for reversing the rotation of the screws.

-3., An' excavating machine comprising a tiltingdigging beam,

an endless series of excavating buckets carried on said beam, mechanlsm for reciprocating the beam and buckets from side to side, said mechanism motion thereof, said means including a. shaft mechanism having a mounted to rotate about an axis coincident with the axis of tilting motibn of the beam, sprockets fixed on said shaft, link belts attached to said buckets, engaging said sprockets, said shaft and sprockets being movable with said beam in the direction of saicb'axis, and a power transmitting connection for driving said shaft, said connection having one axis of rotation coincident with said shaft and involving a counter shaft disposed a distance therefrom, and said L frame which tilts about said axis and whereon said counter shaft is mounted.

5. An excavating machine comprising a tilting digging beam, an endless series of excavating bucket-s carried on said beam, tilting mechanism for reciprocating the beam and buckets from side to side, means to tilt said beam and mechanism about a transverse axis to raise and lower the buckets, and means for operating the buckets in the ground during said lateral motion thereof, said means including a driving shaft for said buckets, rotatable about ana'xfis coincident with the axis of tilting motion of said beam, movable cndwise with the beam, a counter shaft connected with said driving shaft. and a sliding connection supported on said counter shaft and movable back and forth thereon by the lateral motion of said Ming machine comprising a .rn cx 'a. ilting d|gg.-.-.;,, ncaui. an endless series of "-;i\':|tiu; buckets carried on said beam, ii'llllblil in! reciprocating the beam and Mafia-ts; from side to dic. and means for BEST AVNLABLE CO operating the buckets during said lateral motion thereof, said beam having a tilting frame held against lateral movement, tracks on said frame, and wheels on the beam, en-

gaging said tracks, serving to keep the beam and frame parallel, but 'facilitating'lateral motion of the beam between the sides of said frame.

7. An excavating machine comprising a tilting digging beam, excavating buckets carried on said beam, mechanism for reciprocating the beam and buckets from side to side, and means for operating the buckets during said lateral motion thereof, said beam having a rectangular supporting frame, tracks at the upper and lowerends of said frame, and wheels on the beam engaging said tracks, said mechanism including screws extending across said frame, means for rotating said screws, threaded sleeves on said screws, secured to said beam, and a clutch for reversing the rotation of said screws.

an endless series'of zontal and elevated axis extending transversely of the direction of travel of-said machine. I

9. An excavator comprising a digging device, means to operate said device, mechanism for shifting said device back and forth sidewise during operation thereof, and means to tiltsaid device and mechanism about a common horizontal and transverse axis of adjustment to raise and lower said device .in the ground.

10. An excavator comprising a trenchcutter, means to operate said trench-cutter, mechanism to reciprocate said trench-cutter laterally during operation thereof, and means to tilt said mechanism about a horizontal and transverse axis to change the position of said trench-cutter.

11. An excavator comprising a digging device, a frame having screw-mechanism to shift said device laterally, and means to tilt said frame about a horizontal and transverse axis to change the position of said device.

12. An excavator. comprising a tilting trench-cutter and mechanism tilting therewith about a horizontal and transverse axis and adapted to shift the trench-cutter laterall in the direction of said axis and thereby widen the trench.

13. An excavator comprising a trenchcutter, a crack extendingizfgnsi'ersely of said Signed by me at Chicago, Illinois this trench-cu er, wheels on sand trench-cutter 29th day of June, 1.914. to ravel un said t ack. "1nd mean to n v-.

b 5 JAMES c. FRENCH.

Silid' trench-(fitter and track about horizon fial and transvarse axis of adjustment to \Vitnesses:

raise and lower the trench-cutter in the RACHEL J. RICHARDSON, ground. Home E. SEIIXEM.

BESTAVAILABLE COP 

